IT article, HEMS on the way.

Klunk001

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0116/1224310310715.html

kerry4sam

Klunk001 wrote: »

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0116/1224310310715.html

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0116/1224310310715.html

"The Irish Times - Monday, January 16, 2012Air Corps may operate air ambulance
In this section »
South coast marked by tragediesEx-AG says legal Bill would undermine professionWarning over illegal private adoptions from MexicoFestival targets stigma of mental ill-healthIrish side wrote terms of legal dealTD urges people to refuse to pay household taxPAT FLYNN

MINISTER FOR Health Dr James Reilly is expected to confirm this week that the Air Corps will operate Ireland’s first dedicated Helicopter Emergency Medical Service.

Several groups have submitted proposals to operate the emergency air ambulance service, however it is known that Dr Reilly has also been considering the Air Corps and Irish Coast Guard as potential operators.

The Air Corps already carries out “air ambulance” functions where patients are transported between hospitals in Ireland and facilities overseas, while the Coast Guard is responsible for medical evacuations (medivacs) from island communities.

The new service, however, will respond to serious incidents within the State, including road traffic collisions and situations where a patient needs to reach a hospital faster than a road transfer will allow.

This will be the first time that such a dedicated service will be available in Ireland, which remains the only country in the European Union without a dedicated air ambulance service.

It is expected that such a service will play a vital role in responding to serious incidents on the country’s motorway network, which has grown from 300km to 1,187km in just five years."

I've included the text of this article above for people viewing on mobile

kub

There is another thread on this over on Avaition and Aircraft

flazio

Surprised that Dr Reilly didn't go with the Coast Guard to operate this service as the helicopter division of the CG have proven time and time again that they are up to that sort of tasking, plus, although perhaps not the most optimum vehicle for this type of work, there are 6 Sikorsky S-61s that will soon be out of work.

gem112

Cg are great at what they do... But the s61 is a huge chopper that is 40 odd years old and you wouldn't park it to easy on the motorway........let's just say the air corps EC135 would land on a €2 coin the s61 needs the mint to land on....